James Peters, who blew the whistle on Indiana gave the City of Alexandria and its regulators a black eye through a remarkable lawsuit. His allegations of a cover up in water pollution that destroyed local people’s lives as well as his own health seems accurate enough when we look at the evidence.
Cover Up of Dangerous Contaminants
They hid an extraordinarily low level of chlorine as well as E. coli, while repeatedly assuring the public that the water was safe to drink water that residents were drinking unknowingly poisonous. This year sickened some people forever. Put into familiar terms, what this lawsuit argues is that the officials not only violated public trust, but also inflicted permanent injuries on its victims and caused profound emotional distress among them.
A Personal Fight for Justice
Peters himself has been adversely affected by the contaminated water. His health has been ruined after being poisoned by disease bearing water permanent kidney damage, chronic inflammation of the intestinal tract, damaged nerves and other ailments that will take years to heal. But for Peters, the physical pain is only half of it. Equally devastating is the emotional damage suffered by families who thought they were using pure water when instead they were going into their own homes and drinking poison; combined with financial ruin, this has left the city looking like one large mental hospital.
A City of Bad Acts
Hand in hand with this and it is in the tort claim comes the city management’s appalling decision to shut down water services to its most vulnerable households. This drew an already suffering family deeper into tragedy, Peter’s claims; now families with poisoned water on top of everything else had the lifeblood of municipal services cut off: their suffering was compounded by the city, its residents felt helpless and without decent choices.
A Growing Movement of Victims
James Peters is not alone in his quest for justice. Over 30 tort claims have already been filed, with claimants from all around Alexandria coming forward to tell their stories of serious health problems, lost income and emotional devastation. Legal experts predict this is only the beginning of what will be a veritable explosion in claims, as people realize how much damage they have suffered.
“This isn’t just a question of neglect,” Peters stated. “It truly amounts to not just once, but every last time human life in Alexandria being valued at less than nothing. Until those who were responsible are held legally and financially accountable, the people of Alexandria have no intention stopping.”
